A Love Lost

Sebastian

Ana was full of mysteries. Even with access to the funds and special privileges of one of the wealthiest families in Marbella, she was uninterested in all of the things that normal girls were interested in. Just now when I suggested to ask Martin, the chef, to make our pasta, she insisted on doing it herself. The next two months were going to be fun. She was like a puzzle and I was determined to solve every mystery. Also, I had a bad trait of wanting things that Gabriel had.

Our entire lives, he always was the perfect guy. Girls would throw themselves at him, coaches would choose him first for sports, and I was always reminded of how lucky I was to be his brother's friend. Gabriel always had everything he wanted. Now he wanted Ana. She wanted me, not him, and that lit a fire in me. For the first time, he had to live with the fact that he no longer always got what he wanted.

Ana was a prize. She was beautiful. She looked like a runway model. When she went off to cook the pasta, it took everything in me not to force her to stay. But we had two months. I could wait fifteen minutes.

When she returned with the two plates of pasta, I noticed that it wasn't just noodles on the plate. She made us Carbonara. I had told her it was my favorite type. She was perfect. No girl was deep enough to remember something, like that, said in a one-off moment. It proved she was different. It proved that she was meant for me.

"I hope you like it." she offered me the plate.

"It looks amazing." I smiled.

She smiled back at me.

I took a bite of the pasta. "This is really good." It was better than when Martin made it for me. "Where did you learn to cook like this?"

She was silent for a minute.

"Because I was a model, my mother taught me how to make meals that were low on carbs and fats, but high on proteins and healthy stuff. I wasn't even ten when my father started to make me cook dinner. He thought it fair that if I was required to eat differently than him and my mother, I had to cook both meals." She took a bite and then continued. "Now, it made no sense. He forced me into modeling. A friend of his suggested it to him. It helped my family make money. Eventually, my father found another job and took me with him. Then...well, you know the rest."

An expression was painted on her face. Pain. I saw her eyes water.

"Why don't we talk about something else?" I offered.

"That would be nice."

We spent the remaining hours asking each other questions and sharing stories. I felt as if I had divulged everything about myself while she revealed little about herself. It was frustrating. Did she not trust me?

It was almost time for dinner when her phone rang while we were in the middle of a conversation. It was one of the best conversations I ever had with a girl. Ana was genuine. A little cagey, yes, but still honest. Like her appearance, she was pure and natural. Even though we were in the Mediterranean, the ship had internet.

"I'm sorry. I have to take this." she excused herself.

Who or what was so important that she had to interrupt our conversation? Was it Gabriel? If so, what right did he have to interrupt our vacation? He knew she was coming. Still, Gabriel was possessive. When he wanted something or someone, rarely did he fail to have it. In this case, Ana wanted me. He wanted her badly. I knew it was killing him to not have her. The knowledge that it was most likely him calling made my hand twitch, but the knowledge that he was suffering, alone, made me smile.

In our conversations earlier, neither of us brought him up or her family, except for her mother. It was the next topic to address. I had to know how deep their connection ran. I had to know if I truly stood a shot to be with her. Ana was the girl of every guy's dreams. She was the materialization of our wildest dreams. She was all of this and she was with me.

With the thoughts of her possibly wanting me over all the other guys, I headed toward the kitchen to make drinks for dinner.